1. Incorporation by Reference
Applicant(s) hereby incorporate herein by reference, any and all U.S. patents, U.S. patent applications, and other documents and printed matter cited or referred to in this application.
2. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to covers for apparatus and machinery and more particularly to a cover system that is applicable to commercial warehouse lift trucks.
3. Description of Related Art
The following art defines the present state of this field:
Koontz et al., U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,409 describes a protective cover of flexible material such as canvas or duck that is mountable in raised position on a support to provide a top portion and depending portions covering and substantially enclosing an. area to be. protected: The depending portions may be adjustably positioned selectively to provide generally vertical openings in different parts of the cover. When in raised position, the cover material itself can be adjusted to provide a drainage gutter. The cover may also be conditioned for being mounted in unraised, substantially flat condition for protecting an unoccupied area, such as in a boat when moored or being transported. The cover may be set up to protect various other areas, such as on the ground, for example at a camp site.
Allen, U.S. Pat. No. 3,884,523 describes a protective covering for a vehicle of the motorcycle or motorbike type for protecting the vehicle from the elements when parked outside, the covering comprising a generally contoured cover of flexible material contained within a cover storage compartment in the vehicle seat and having a portion thereof permanently secured to the vehicle seat with the cover being readily withdrawn from a closable opening in the vehicle seat in a manner to completely overlie the vehicle to cover the same and protect the vehicle from the elements, the cover being readily foldable and collapsible into a compact package for reinsertion back into the vehicle seat storage compartment during times of usage of the vehicle such that the covering always remains fixedly attached to the vehicle seat and is readily adapted to be rapidly and conveniently spread over the entire vehicle whenever desired for protecting the vehicle.
Mills, U.S. Pat. No. 4,098,536 describes a flexible sheet of at least partially transparent, water repellent material is constructed to fit over the roof or canopy and sides of a golf cart for enclosure during inclement weather. An access is provided through the side wall for getting in and out of the cart and, when not in use, the weather shield may be removed from the cart, folded and stored in a pouch.
Thau et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,652,037 describes a protective cover for the cab portion of a fork lift truck. The cab being defined by a frame having corner posts upstanding from the truck body and supporting the roof. The cover includes a top panel which overlies the roof and further includes front, rear, and side wall panels depending from the top panel secured thereto as well as to each other by edge seams. The side panels include roll up doors and the front and rear panels include windows. Flaps are provided over the windows. Straps depend from the top panel interiorly of the doors and flaps. The doors and flaps can be exteriorly rolled up with the straps wrapping around them and secured onto fasteners provided on the top panel so as to hold the doors and windows in an open condition.
Kessler, U.S. Pat. No. 4,811,767 describes a substantially weather-proof, protective cover which can be easily installed and removed and which is adapted to protect a swimming pool pump and filter assembly is provided. The cover is comprised of a plurality of separate pieces which when assembled and joined to each other form a unitary body which conforms substantially to the shape of the swimming pool pump and filter assembly. The cover includes: (1) a weather proof, outer layer, e.g., a marine vinyl layer which is sized to fit snugly around and substantially enclose the pump and filter assembly; (2) a mesh border affixed to the bottom edge of the outer layer; and (3) means located in the mesh border for securing the cover around the pump and filter assembly. The cover may also include: (4) sealable access means such as a zipper in the outer layer providing access to the pump and filter assembly.
Robbins, U.S. Pat. No. 5,193,724 describes a bag like main cover having side wall panels closed at the rear but open at the bottom and front. The top is closed from the rear to a point short of the front, leaving open top edges adjacent the front to fit around the upright gooseneck of the bicycle handlebars. Matching Velcro strips are attached to the side walls in the areas of the open portions thereof for releasably securing edges of the cover to lower portions of the bicycle and also to hold weather tight folds of the cover around the gooseneck. A hood-like auxiliary cover is shaped to releasably fit on and protect the handlebars and also receives the main cover therein for storing it when not in use. The auxiliary cover also has Velcro sealing strips that hold it on handlebars when in use and also strap it and the enclosed main cover to a bicycle portion when not in use.
Jannausch, U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,408 describes a boat cover assembly including a boat cover mounted to a plurality of posts assemblies. Each post assembly has a foot section, a post member, and a upper section. The upper section has a batten member mounted in a channel and extending laterally into sleeves sewn into the cover. The cover also has a chord in the hem line to tighten the cover about the boat hull below its rub line. Straps and are secured to cover and mounted about the underside of the hull and fastened together to secure the cover to the boat.
Tall, U.S. Pat. No. 5,458,945 describes a removable protective cover for a snowmobile including a sheet sized for enclosing a cowling of a snowmobile, the sheet having a top panel with a front panel, a rear panel, and a pair of side panels extended therefrom to define a hollow interior and a common bottom edge, the top panel having a opening formed thereon and an elastic band secured thereto about the periphery of the opening for holding the sheet about a windshield of a snowmobile, the rear panel having a large lower cut out formed thereon to create a pair of opposed lower corners and a small upper cut out extended upwards from the lower cut out to create a pair of upper corners, an upper rear edge extended between the upper corners, and a pair of opposed lower rear edges, the sheet further having a cable with an end located near an upper corner, another end located near the other upper corner, and an intermediate portion therebetween coupled to the lower rear edges and the bottom edge, and a cable securement mechanism for securing the ends of the cable in a closed loop configuration.
Ziegler et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,394,821 describes a protective covering of a watercraft which is constructed of a thin, stretchable material that completely circumscribes the upper portion of the hull of the craft thereby protecting it from the elements and from damage from other watercraft and fixed objects such as boat docks. The protective covering is formed from a plurality of easily interconnected segments that can be compactly rolled or folded for ease of storage and transport. The covering is sleek and attractive, is light weight, floatable, durable in use, resists tearing and abrasion and effectively protects the craft from scratches, dings and dents when the craft comes into contact with other watercraft or with fixed objects.
Celestino et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,445,200 describes a bicycle protective cover comprising of a fabric or plastic flexible material that conveniently and easily wraps around and completely encloses a bicycle. The cover is provided in a single piece having pockets contoured to comfortably fit the bicycle seat and the handlebars. Each of these pockets is closed by a hook and loop fastener. Circular portions at each end of the cover are provided with flexible elastic borders allowing them to be stretched around and retained on the front and rear wheels. The remaining panel of the cover then folds over the bicycle to completely seal and enclose the bicycle. The closing panel is provided with an elastic cord around the periphery of its border to draw the cover tight once it is completely wrapped around the bicycle. The cover includes webbing appropriately placed to aid in conveniently aligning the cover with the wheels, the seat, or the handlebars. The wheel covers are drawn around each side of the wheel and the closing panel installed by first installing the fitted pockets over the seat and the handlebars. The closing panel is then drawn tightly around the opposite side of the bicycle.
Wilson, U.S. Pat. No. 5,618,159 describes a protective guard for attachment to conventional lift trucks to prevent damage to transported materials caused by the hard surfaces and edges of lift forks which comprises a flexible sheet having cushioning characteristics and having a width sufficient in length to span and cover the lift forks. The protective guard further comprises hook and loop type fasteners for attaching the flexible sheet to the lift truck such that the sheet covers the potentially damaging lift forks and allows for lateral movement of the lift forks.
Whiteside, U.S. Pat. No. 6,070,629 describes a protective vehicle cover for protecting an outer surface of a vehicle from hail and other falling objects. The cover includes a flexible blanket having an inner ply, an outer ply and bubble-like air pockets which are sandwiched between the inner and outer plies. A fastener is provided for attaching the flexible blanket to the outer surface of the vehicle. Preferably, the air pockets are bubble-like spherical or hemispherical embossments formed on an inner ply of the blanket material, the pockets being generally circular in cross-section with an average maximum diameter of about 1.5 inches or less. An inner thin film plastic backing layer can be laminated to an intermediate film layer which has been embossed to form the air pockets therebetween with an outer cover layer being laminated to the emboss layer to provide an outer, decorative appearance for the vehicle cover.
Schultz et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,129,408 describes a snowmobile cover with first and second receptacles for trapping water, snow, ice and dirt. The first receptacle is the cover as a whole wherein the cover forms a bowl like shape via an elastic cord housed in an endless sheath formed by and about the perimeter of the cover. As the cover is taken off the snowmobile, the cover is turned inside out, forming the bowl shape for containing the water, snow, ice and dirt. A second receptacle is a built in carrying bag for the receptacle. The cover (whether or not turned inside out) is rolled up into a bundle and the bundle is tucked inside of the bag for storage. If desired, water, snow, ice and dirt on the outside of the cover (or on the inside of the cover turned inside out) is also rolled up with the cover and retained within the built in bag. At a convenient location, instead of in the snowmobile trailer or in the garage, or when the snowmobiler has more time or is at a warmer location, the cover may be unraveled and turned right side out and shaken to clean the cover of melted snow and dirt. The cover further has a relatively large opening for the handlebars of the snowmobile to permit unrestricted access to the gas tank, controls and compartments. The cover further is tailored to fit the lines of a snowmobile by the inclusion of a relatively snug fit for the front of the machine, a relatively snug fit for the rear of the machine, and a tent like fit for the middle of the machine having protruding handlebars and windshield, where the tent like portion is later pinched down by a bungee cord.
Carlson, U.S. Pat. No. 6,263,648 describes a lawn tractor cover assembly comprising a tractor cover and a deck cover wherein the deck cover is removably attached to the tractor cover and the tractor cover has an elasticized skirt for holding the lawn tractor cover assembly to the lawn tractor.
Tsai, U.S. Pat. No. 6,298,991 describes a protective pouch having a closed cell foam padding and a casing enclosed around the closed cell foam padding. The configuration forms two opposing curved sidewalls. The protective pouch has a closing mechanism, which can be a flap extending from one sidewall and attached to the other sidewall. The pouch can be substantially fitted for a rectangular object so that when the object is inside said pouch, the object forms protective pockets between the sidewalls of the object and opposing sidewalls of the pouch.
Our prior art search with abstracts described above teaches protective covers for fork lift trucks, lawn tractors, lift truck forks, snowmobiles, vehicles, bicycles, watercraft, pumps, golf carts, and other machines and apparatus, but does not teach a lift truck cover system that is able to conform to a lift truck outer body configuration in a manner that tight fitting and yet easily removable for truck servicing. The present invention fulfills these needs and provides further related advantages as described in the following summary.